Thursday, 06 September 2011
As I passed through the plateau east of Findlay Avenue, I remembered the pair of deer I surprised there yesterday morning. I had been noisily scaring back the geese from the bikeway, since they seemed to have found a new place for their foraging and pooping, foraging and more pooping. But as I completed the slow, wide corner that heads to a closer path near the forested area above the Mad River, the two deer startled and took off along the path ahead of me. After only 30 feet, the doe darted left through an opening in the undergrowth. The 6-point buck high-tailed it on. I had nearly caught up to him, even though his sinewy muscles had reached about 20 mph, when he found his own break in the undergrowth, and dashed into the thicket and away from the bikeway.
Today I had a follow-up appointment with my family physician to discuss the cardiac stress test that showed a deviation that is usually associated with ischemia and the cardiac CAT scan that revealed no abnormalities.My family doctor advised that the first test could have had a glitch for any number of reasons, and the CAT scan was a more reliable reading that sufficiently countered the first reading. But he cautioned that today's accepted practice aims away from exploring tests and using them to establish a baseline. Rather, the preference now is to pay close attention to risk factors, including heredity and lifestyle.
Though my genetic pool might suggest a predilection toward heart attack (the cause of my father's death) or stroke (my mother's demise), one could argue that our differing lifestyles give me an advantage of a longer, healthier maturity. My father was mostly sedentary from age 50 on, and he smoked throughout his life. My mother was relatively inactive, always overweight, and plagued by hypertension and perhaps a mildly congestive heart condition. And using non-direct family is of less use. For example, the one aunt I know of who died of Alzheimer's may have little bearing on my future. And if it were applicable, her survival into the 90s after several years of late-onset Alzheimer's is a better genetic factor than the worst alternative, early-onset that may occur in a person's 40s or 50s.
Thus were my preoccupations during my ride home. I didn't feel any particular exertion, though I arrived home in one of my shorter overall times.
Ride conditions
Temperature: 77 to 81°F at 17:30
Precipitation: none
Winds: 5 mph, variable
Clothing: Skinsuit, ankle socks, open-finger gloves
Bike: Lotus Legend fixed gear
Time: 00:40:58 for 11.93 miles
Heart rate: 134 bpm HRave, 172 bpm HRmax*
Bikeway users: 9 cyclists, 8 pedestrians, 1 dogs
Playback of the ride
* Perhaps unlikely.
Showing posts with label cardiac stress test. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cardiac stress test. Show all posts
06 October 2011
29 September 2011
Cardiac stress test and echocardiogram, part two
Thursday, 29 September 2011
Today was not a bike-commute day because of a 7 a.m. appointment for a more definitive stress test. Last week's test showed an area of concern that my doctor wanted to check out with a procedure that combines a cardiac stress test on a treadmill and CAT scans before and after the exercise. (While at the doctor's office, I got a copy of the test report, which reads in part, "There was 1 to 1.5 mm of horizontal ST segment depression laterally suggestive of ischemia.")
The procedure took a bit over three hours. First I was given a radioactive marker by intravenous, after which I had to wait 30 minutes for the material to "settle" in the veins and arteries of my heart. Then I was placed in the CAT machine for a localized scan of the thorax. This was followed by a treadmill stress test that aimed to bring my heart rate up to about 130 bpm in 5 stages. During the fifth stage, another dose of the radioactive marker was injected into the IV. I rested long enough for recovery to normal heart rate and a total of 30 minutes for the isotope to find its way to the cardiac vessels. The final step was another CAT scan.
I should hear the results early next week.
What runs counter to the charting is that I have no pain on exertion. So, perhaps it's good that I pursued what the genetics have produced in me, despite my care to keep active into maturity.
Today was not a bike-commute day because of a 7 a.m. appointment for a more definitive stress test. Last week's test showed an area of concern that my doctor wanted to check out with a procedure that combines a cardiac stress test on a treadmill and CAT scans before and after the exercise. (While at the doctor's office, I got a copy of the test report, which reads in part, "There was 1 to 1.5 mm of horizontal ST segment depression laterally suggestive of ischemia.")
The procedure took a bit over three hours. First I was given a radioactive marker by intravenous, after which I had to wait 30 minutes for the material to "settle" in the veins and arteries of my heart. Then I was placed in the CAT machine for a localized scan of the thorax. This was followed by a treadmill stress test that aimed to bring my heart rate up to about 130 bpm in 5 stages. During the fifth stage, another dose of the radioactive marker was injected into the IV. I rested long enough for recovery to normal heart rate and a total of 30 minutes for the isotope to find its way to the cardiac vessels. The final step was another CAT scan.
I should hear the results early next week.
What runs counter to the charting is that I have no pain on exertion. So, perhaps it's good that I pursued what the genetics have produced in me, despite my care to keep active into maturity.
13 September 2011
Cardiac stress test and echocardiogram
Tuesday, 13 September 2011
I convinced the nurses in Dr. Markus' office to allow me to connect the HR monitor while they guided me through the stress test and echocardiogram. The stress test took about 15 minutes, though the playback shows it occurring within 00:01:43. This was followed by about 5 minutes of monitored cooldown, and then time in the waiting room until the echocardiogram. The echocardiogram took perhaps 15 minutes, after which I turned off the HR monitor.
The HR monitor consistently corroborated the HR recorded by the medical machines.
Ride conditions
Time elapsed: 01:04:20Heart rate: 75 bpm HRave, 156 bpm HRmax
Playback of the ride
I convinced the nurses in Dr. Markus' office to allow me to connect the HR monitor while they guided me through the stress test and echocardiogram. The stress test took about 15 minutes, though the playback shows it occurring within 00:01:43. This was followed by about 5 minutes of monitored cooldown, and then time in the waiting room until the echocardiogram. The echocardiogram took perhaps 15 minutes, after which I turned off the HR monitor.
The HR monitor consistently corroborated the HR recorded by the medical machines.
Ride conditions
Time elapsed: 01:04:20Heart rate: 75 bpm HRave, 156 bpm HRmax
Playback of the ride
07 September 2011
Rain day—here's another reason I bike-commute
Wednesday, 7 September 2011
It's been raining, usually lightly, since late last night, but that's not the primary reason that I drove to work today. I'm scheduled for an entry appointment with my cardiologist. Yep. Heart problems, stroke, circulation, pulmonary function, and how I can avoid them are my topics with Dr. Tim Markus of the Dayton Heart Center.
Since I turned 60 this year, I decided it's time to assess my health, assure my ability to carry on as active life as possible, quantify my current abilities, and determine the corrections I can make to maintain a healthy life. My father died at age 70 of a sudden heart attack. Perhaps he had indications of heart problems, but he always called the attacks "heartburn." His self-administered treatment was to stretch back in his chair and pound his upper bellly, just below the ribcage. A few solid raps would stop the pains he felt, or so he said. Then one July afternoon, he lifted some item that an auctioneer friend of his was to start the bidding for, and collapsed. He died on the spot from a heart attack.
Ride conditions
Not applicable
It's been raining, usually lightly, since late last night, but that's not the primary reason that I drove to work today. I'm scheduled for an entry appointment with my cardiologist. Yep. Heart problems, stroke, circulation, pulmonary function, and how I can avoid them are my topics with Dr. Tim Markus of the Dayton Heart Center.
Since I turned 60 this year, I decided it's time to assess my health, assure my ability to carry on as active life as possible, quantify my current abilities, and determine the corrections I can make to maintain a healthy life. My father died at age 70 of a sudden heart attack. Perhaps he had indications of heart problems, but he always called the attacks "heartburn." His self-administered treatment was to stretch back in his chair and pound his upper bellly, just below the ribcage. A few solid raps would stop the pains he felt, or so he said. Then one July afternoon, he lifted some item that an auctioneer friend of his was to start the bidding for, and collapsed. He died on the spot from a heart attack.
Ride conditions
Not applicable
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)